Salford's MediaCityUK complex has been named the ugliest new building in Britain.
It has been named the 2011 winner of the Carbuncle Cup, a controversial annual award complied by an industry magazine for architects.
The £600m development will host the new regional headquarters for the BBC and a media studies faculty of Salford University. Granada TV will also move there next year, along with the set of Coronation Street.
The Carbuncle Cup nomination for MediaCityUK says: “For an organisation with high cultural aspirations, it is hard to see how the BBC could have sunk much lower.”
Ellis Woodman, editor of Building Design magazine, which compiles the awards, says in the latest edition: “Whatever urban aspiration may be indicated by its name, a city is the last thing one would mistake this development for.
“There is no urban idea to speak of whatsoever – no space that one might recognise as a street; no common architectural language; no difference between the fronts and backs of buildings. There is no distinction made between civic and private buildings either.
“Visiting MediaCityUK, it is hard to see how the corporation could set their aspirations any lower. How uncreative can a ‘Creative Quarter’ be?"
The magazine adds: “What we are presented with instead is a crazed accumulation of development, in which every aimlessly gesticulating building sports at least three different cladding treatments. The incessant visual excitement reads as a desperate attempt to compensate for an underlying lack of urban vitality.”
The shortlist for the awards, drawn from suggestions by members of the public, included the Museum of Liverpool, which was named runner-up.
MediaCityUK developer Peel Holdings declined to comment.
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What utter rubbish do these people spout. I took a relative visting from Australia a few weeks ago and they like me thought the whole area was absolutely fantastic.
Bit harsh. Especially when you look at the runners-up (Ebenezer Chapel, Phoenix High School and Newport Station in particular).
But then, what do I know about building design?
Well it does have that over developed "Benidorm" look about it .
Possibly the critics are labelling the tennant rather than the owner of the building. Is it not Peel Holdings whose building has been awarded Carbunkle of the year.
If only they'd shaped it like a gherkin... or a testicle.
They'd have won awards!
To offset the silly Carbuncle gloom cloud, here are five High Definition 360 movie views of MediaCityUK BBC North and UoS taken on a sunny, blue sky day late last week:
1. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZEc4YhCors
2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xihZi0_7H1I
3. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3DulpAancA
4. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VOKv3fPJk2Q
5. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49fe4QRAx40
and also the 16,000+ MediaCityUk Photo Timeline (still updated for the ITV development by yours truly):
http://www.mediacityuksalfordquays.net/mcuk.htm
For me, a great and child friendly panoramic in Salford Quays where previously, only grassland and old shipping equipment existed… just as well, I need banners for my company website ;-)
Architectural tastes are very much subjective. I think it is a splendid development. If you have not yet had the opportunity to view the buildings follow this link:
http://paulmansfieldmanchesterphoto.com/page2.htm
I love it
No such thing as bad publicity as all media people know. Before long the complex will be described as 'cherished' and 'iconic' before being awarded Listed Building status.
"What we are presented with instead is a crazed accumulation of development, in which every aimlessly gesticulating building sports at least three different cladding treatments. The incessant visual excitement reads as a desperate attempt to compensate for an underlying lack of urban vitality."
And I reciprocate with psued claptrap of the year. What a lot of pretentious crap.
nteresting that this magazine waffles on about creativity and how this development lacks it.
and how the bbc have set aspirations low on this.
have this magazine ever visited telivision centre in london? judging from their comments i guess not.
anything is an improvement on the bbc's origian base.
if they bbc has asked peel to build a more pleasing to the eye development it probably would have come at the expense of usability of space and at a much more expensive price tag.
and who would foot the bill of that higher price tag? we the people who pay the licence fee.
I am sick of the MEN's obsession of Media City.... Its here, I dont care if certain employees dont want to up sticks here. I dont care if a bunch of pretensious people find the building ugly. It is a good thing. It will help the national media lnot to be so London orientated and have turned a waste land into a modern site for the future as well as bring jobs to the northwest.
Can we now stop having stupid stories dedicated to Media City? This stone has no more blood!
Do we really have to care what these fussy, effete, pedantic dilettante's think?
It looks fine to me. And i suspect it looks fine to a lot of other people.
Ugly? I know what ugly is and this is not my definition of ugly.
This is just another round of Salford slagging.Jumping on the band wagon They all obviously watch Top Gear identify with Jeremy Clarkson's take and feel they must fall in line with their spiritual leader. They probably share his penchant for fast cars, ill gotten and excessive incomes and for being utterly detached from the rest of us.
Salford and Manchester are , we all know, are a mixture of the good and bad . But the Quays is overwhelmingly a success story. This is what proper regeneration is about albeit not without some continuing issues. Can we have a moment of recognition for this please ? No .That just doesn't make news at the moment and it runs counter to the prevailing media narrative.
This current anti northern tack coming out of our London centric chattering middle classes is getting pretty tiresome !
Are the moderators on holiday today or have they decided that only comments on football are going to be processed?
does not look that bad to me - without doubt the ugliest building i have ever seen is rowlandsway house in wythenshawe (google it ) , absolutely horrible blot on the landscape !
It is truly hideous like most of the modern buildings in Manchester.
Perhaps it could be renamed. 'MediocreCityUK.'
Whilst Media City is not particularly attractive, surely the cup should go to the Betham Towers .... whoever gave planning permission for that needs their head examining !
LBC
I bet you any money the magazine is based down south written by southern based people. Come and have a look for yourselfs the whole area now is becomming great.
It is a fantastic new designed area - an when you take a look around from Old Trafford via Lowry, Manchester ship canal to the new buildings around the Salford Quays, you can see absolute different buildings, some of them excentric designed. It is always an interesting and progressive picture of urban business and life and - one of Manchester's visitor attractions.
What it really needs to complete it are a few local councillors to act as gargoyles.
It really doesnt matter how ugly it is as Peel Holdings are laughing all the way to the bank as they stuff their coffers with the billions of central and local government money that has been spent on this folly.
It may have created a few jobs but they could have paid the population of Salford to stay at home for the next 10 years and it would have been cheaper.
Oh well!
I'm councillor for Gorse Hill which is on the opposite bank of the canal. Most of what the judges have pronounced is tosh.
However,... there is a kernal of truth that the whole area (including the Trafford side) lacks what they describe as urban vitality and I would call a buzz. Ok a lot of it is not yet occupied, but most of the Quays has been up for a few years now and I think there's certainly a lesson to Peel in particular that being so controlling does make things simple as a landlord but you can also squeeze all ingenuity out of a place. The photos that Paul Mansfield posted earlier are extremely attractive; but we have to make sure that one day there's some people in them. So far the record at the Quays is that it's depopulation come dusk is too severe and if you want the buzz of creativity we're going to have to see diversification of landlord and tennants.
<a href="http://www.gorsehill-labour.co.uk/wordpress/?p=782">www.gorsehill-labour.co.uk blogpost on same topic</a>
i will take bets that these so called experts on buildings ALL CAME FROM LONDON. enough said.
Peel Holdings - what a fine company they are. Aren't they?
If you think this is ugly just look at what this company is planning to despoil the Liverpool waterfront with. But then there's lots of profit in it so it doesn't matter.
Should be a good match for those overpaid blockheads.